Two businesses — Carolina Upholstery and 5D Custom Hats and Leather — and Mission Good Samaritan, a church, were total losses, said Goettsch. The fire was reported just after 7 a.m. took more than three hours to subdue. No injuries were reported.

Goettsch said investigators believe the fire started in Carolina Upholstery and then quickly spread to the adjoining business and church. All were longtime tenants of the small commercial strip named Butternut Square.

Chemicals in the businesses not only caused excessive smoke that could be seen throughout town but posed a challenge for fire crews, who tried to extinguish the blaze by spraying water from ladders above the building before using foam.

Goettsch explained Wednesday that the fire department annually conducts a pre-fire planning survey of every commercial business in Abilene. During the survey, the fire department not only updates owner contact information, but it details how each building is laid out.

The number of sprinklers and the building's extinguishing systems are noted in the survey and how many people generally work throughout the day, he said.

The surveys, he said, can make all the difference not only for the safety of firefighters, but people. Fire prevention inspectors also annually inspect for safety hazards, he said.